Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/dvdtalk...eb6a9d53d.jpeg





Rated: PG-13

Running Time: 107 minutes

RT Score: 85%

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/predator_badlands


Screenings officially started last night


I plan to see it tonight at 7pm

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Got tickets for tomorrow night. My buddy was super excited to see this, which surprised me, because he didn't like Prey at all.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

PG-13? is this a first for the franchise?

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Great fun. A kinder gentler Predator movie maybe but also do we really need to keep telling the same Predator stories nearly 40 years on? It felt good to see a new story. I liked the expansion to lore and culture and going the Predators more depth (like how does a society like that function?) Fanning was excellent and while some of the battles got a bit CGI for me it was an entertaining time at the movies and better than most of the Predator movies. Could care less if it’s PG-13 if it tells a decent story.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Wow, I really liked this! A fun ride and it wasn't just a great Predator movie, it's a great movie. I may like it less on a repeat viewing, but for a fun opening night on IMAX with a great crowd, I'm going 4-5 out of 5 stars, this is great.

Stay for the title screen, but there is NO post-credit scene.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Saw it tonight. Overall liked it more than I expected to. It’s a different type of Predator movie, but the more I think about it that’s not necessarily bad.

I liked how we got to know this Predator more and that he had an arc. The ties to the Alien franchise are definitely strong in this movie. I feel like we’ll see more crossover between the two franchises and maybe revisit something AVP related at some point.

I will say I think I preferred Prey between the two live action Trachtenberg films. Something about the more traditional simplistic nature of that one appealed to me slightly more. Still thought this movie was worth seeing.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

A complete blast!! Awesome action and Fanning was fantastic with her two characters. They made the right decision to put this in theaters. The Predator head keychain AMC gave out was cool too.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

This was pretty damn awesome. I was entertain from the get go and Im looking forward to meeting Mother!

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

As long as you go into this expecting basically an action packed realistic looking Predator cartoon, aimed at kids, you will not be disappointed.

This movie isn't a great Predator movie but it is fun. It is tightly paced and even with all the action virtually every second, there is actual substantive character development. I am not a fan of all the CGI used in this. Sometimes it is great and other times it is horrible. I get why they do the Predator faces CG, but damn, they look so much cooler when practical, even if there is less emotive response. The main creature, the Kalisk, along with almost all the other creatures, are woefully bad CG with a generic design you have seen in a hundred video games and movies.

There is a lot of humor in this that sometimes works, but the majority feels as if it was meant for a Disney-type animated Predator movie. Very cutesy type stuff than major adult Predator fans will roll their eyes at. Don't expect any real tension or scares in this.

The music score is great and elevates a lot of scenes. The CG landscapes are actually well rendered and gorgeous to look at. The main villain (female robot) is not very interesting. She is portrayed as such a badass, you will wonder why they one have only one of her and thousands of the non-descript same looking male storm troopers that are just target practice for our hero.

The various Predator designs look awesome. The Yautja family dynamics are far more interesting than the forced "instant family" created for the movie. I would have preferred it stuck with the real Yautja family stuff the whole time. And speaking of...the female wannabe C3PO will get on your nerves pretty quickly. The best scenes are at the beginning of the movie. Not that the rest is bad, but there is a slight decline after the first few major scenes.

Anyway, that is a long-winded way of saying, this is a great Predator movie for taking the family. This is not the adult Predator movie most probably wanted. Enjoyable but too light and breezy.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

I had so much fun watching this tonight. Don’t be worried at all that it’s PG-13. There is a ton of action and violence. It’s definitely a lighter Predator movie and more action adventure oriented. Elle Fanning was awesome as Thia and I enjoyed her interactions with Dek. I think some of the elements were influenced by old school martial arts and samurai movies dealing with honor, family and retribution.

Yes, I got the free keychain. It’s cool looking, but not a really practical collectible. I would have much preferred a small print instead.

After the teaser of Dek’s mom coming into the picture, my theater gave a big round of applause.

Trachtenberg is 2 for 2 with this series. So glad they didn’t dump this to Hulu like Prey. His contribution to this series makes Shane Black’s The Predator look even worse. I was so disappointed with that movie, especially since Black actually had a role in the original and is a well regarded writer. I felt like Trachtenberg understood this world more than him.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

"I have spoken."


https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/dvdtalk...5961057667.gif

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Take Avatar, Star Wars, Aliens, Jurassic Park, Rambo and a dash of Lethal Weapon and voila you have Predator Badlands.

Forgetting to put in any Predator ingredients is apparently also part of the recipe. 😆 . It manages to be a fresh take on the Predator franchise, while also a rehash of just about every other franchise in existence.

That’s okay though. It’s still an entertaining movie. I liked it for the most part. I thought the first act and third act were both phenomenal. The second act was a maudlin, hamfisted Disneyfied mess.

id give it a 3.5/5. And rank the franchise as follows.

6. The Predator
5. Predator 2
4. Predator: Badlands
3. Predators
2 Prey
1 Predator

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

That's simply because he's not fighting humans. Replace the white synth blood with red and you'd be getting into X-rated territory. It was pretty gruesome at times.

I really liked this movie. I'm glad it was from the Predator's perspective. Made it feel fresh and original compared to the others. I'm a big fan of Prey too, but we didn't have to rehash that again, so I'm loving what Trachtenberg is doing with the series and where he's taking it.

I am recovering from a busy work week and wasn't in the best head space so I want to go see this again but I hope it does well because it deserves it.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Overall, I really liked it. Saw it in IMAX, but I couldn't see any benefit for IMAX or it's 3D version, so I may see it again in Dolby Cinema. The beginning was fantastic with the inter-family conflict, took me a while to warm up with the meet cute with Fanning and especially the Lucas style monkey buddy, but it got back on track and finished strong with the clone soldier battle, so hopefully I can squeeze and premium screen before it moves on

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Caught this one this afternoon. Really liked it and thought it was way better than it probably should have been. I was skeptical about the PG-13 rating, but that was just because the violence was directed at other creatures and androids. The acts of violence themselves were definitely R rated. I too got concerned when Elle Fanning (who seemed to be imitating Amy Poehler as Thia) first appeared, but she got more bearable as the movie progressed and Fanning did a good job showing off her range with the second character. One thing that was pretty clear after this movie is that in the Alien/Predator universe, the only true villain is the Weyland/Yutani corporation. I look forward to where they can go with this concept.

For fellow comic book nerds: anyone else think the Dek having a broken tooth was a reference to the Broken Tusk character in the original Aliens vs. Predator GN?

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Great movie. Yeah Deck is cool, double Elle Fanning great but BUD was fucking awesome!

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Just got back from watching this. What a blast! I can't wait to pre-order the 4K. Just like with Predator: Killer Of Killers, I hope Trachtenberg sticks with this franchise for a long time.

Dek was awesome. Thia was adorable. Tessa was sexy (love how different Elle Fanning was in both roles). But I agree that Bud stole the show. I hope this gets a sequel because I want more adventures with the clan.
That's the first thing I thought as well.:up:

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Just saw it. There are parts I liked but my main complaint was it was too jokey. Too many parts played for laughs. I enjoyed it, but Prey was way, way better.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

You can definitely feel the Disney influence unfortunately. I liked it but that’s one thing about it I didn’t love. You can just tell certain things were done to make it appeal to a wider audience- more jokes, a cute creature companion, etc.

Disney just can’t resist putting their touches on things, and yeah I realize they technically own it now, but not everything has to be mass appeal/family friendly.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

I'm curious what star rating you all with unimpressed reviews would give this movie because you're not showing your opinions in the poll.

I dunno. If you want to make more of your expensive-to-make movies, I'd think you'd want it to appeal to as mamy people as possible while maintaining its overall integrity. I think this movie did that very well.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

I think it’s between a 3.5 and 4. It is a good movie but some flaws. That said I do like that it did something different instead of being the same plot over and over.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Maybe because it wasn’t human gore, but I felt like even the Predator/synth/alien gore was overall fairly mild.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

Ok I voted. 3.5 stars. Was I entertained? Yes. Was it a great movie? Not really. It has some good things such as Thia/Tessa. Fanning was great in the role and I would love to see more of Thia. I loved the world they were on where everything was trying to kill them. I loved Dek being resourceful and using things from the environment to help him fight at the end.

Bud was fine until I figured out what she was and how they were going to use it in the plot. Dek training that spitting animal to be his shoulder cannon was beyond ridiculous.

Yes, the movie tried to hit all 4 quadrants. Unfortunately, that isn't really what I am looking for in a Predator movie. And with Trachtenberg saying he wants to do a Predator cinematic universe, it feels like this may be the tone of the movies going forward.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

They literally stepped on a synths head and crushed it flat with everything spewing out.

Lots of decapitations, cutting creatures in half lengthwise, limbs hacked off. I dunno, seemed pretty “gory” to me.

Re: Predator: Badlands (2025, D: Trachtenberg) -- The Spoiler Reviews Thread
 

I would call it the best theatrically released Predator movie since 1987.